Lupica, Mike. Miracle on 49th Street.

LUPICA, Mike. Miracle on 49th Street. Penguin, Philomel. 256p. c2006. 0-399-24488-3. $1799. J

As the novel opens, Molly Parker is waiting outside a Boston Celtics' practice to meet Josh Cameron, the media darling and captain of the basketball team. Molly is in Boston because her mother has recently died of cancer and Josh Cameron just might be the father she has never known. She is living with Bill and Barbara Evans and their prissy daughter, Kimberly. Lupica takes his readers inside the NBA with the agents, the media, the players, the endorsements and, of course, the fans. Cameron is the squeaky clean player who is not ready to accept an unknown daughter from a college sweetheart. He waffles between wanting to accept Molly and not knowing how to fit a preteen into his life. Molly is a smart-mouthed kid with a nerdy best friend Sam, who stands beside her through the ups and downs of trying to connect with a superstar father. Molly struggles to establish a new "family" for herself in the wake of her mother's death. Josh's uncertainty seems to waver between not believing Molly and not wanting to hurt his promising career and endorsements. Friendship is a key element throughout the story and Molly's friends are as diverse as classmate Sam and Josh's housekeeper, Mattie. There is basketball talk and a couple of basketball games but the real story is one of learning to build trust. Readers will come away with a deeper understanding of the complexity of relationships, especially those both inside and outside the spotlight. Janis Flint-Ferguson, Assoc. Prof., English, Gordon College, Wenham, MA

J--Recommended for junior high school students. The contents are of particular interest to young adolescents and their teachers.